European Union’s special Task Force StratCom East collects examples of the Russian disinformation attacks and publishes them in a weekly “Disinformation Review.” Euromaidan Press chose Top 5 of the most absurd and outrageous fakes of issue 12 of the booklet, released on 26 January 2016.

Fake #5: Dutch farms won’t survive competition with Ukrainian ones

Ukrainian agriculture sector is so powerful it will make the Dutch farmers go bankrupt – at least, that is what Russian propaganda king Dmitri Kisielyov said on 17 January in his Vesti nedeli show on TV channel Rossia.

Kiselyov now pushes this message with same forwardness as he did in 2014 to push the message about Trade Association of Ukraine with the European Union was conceived by crafty Europeans to rob Ukraine, that the EU will give Ukraine no loans, and that no Ukrainian goods cross the border of the EU.

The European Parliament gave its consent to the EU-Ukraine Association agreement, which includes a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (DCFTA), in September of 2014. Photo: http://eeas.europa.eu/

The DCFTA has come into action with the beginning of 2016 and the EU has been providing aid to Ukraine, so Russian propaganda has nothing else to do but reverse its narratives.

Dutch agriculture is one of the most efficient in the world and this sector is considered as one of the most promising for cooperation between Ukraine and the Netherlands.

Yet Kiselyov’s groundless statement was not about Ukrainian business being promising – it was to cultivate the idea that Dutch citizens are resisting the DCFTA, fearing competition with Ukraine.

Fake #4: European snipers shoot down Maidan

This is what was suggested on the Slovak portal Zemavek.sk on 17 January. According to the message, a new study “The ‘Snipers’ Massacre’ on the Maidan in Ukraine” by Ottawa University about Euromaidan events proves that snipers on the roofs in Kyiv were not hired by Ukrainian government, but by Western forces to provoke chaos and toppling of Yanukovych. Zemavek.sk suggests that they were instructed to shoot both into protesters and into police.

The quoted study states exactly the opposite.”This study found no evidence of the government or any “third force” snipers massacring the protesters; and the official investigation also did not produce such evidence.”

Yet this was no obstacle for the authors of the article of publishing an obvious lie, hoping readers won’t trouble themselves in reading the source.

The quoted study states exactly the opposite: that there was no evidence of the “third force” snipers on Maidan.

Fake #3: Nuland & Surkov prevented the Third World War

Do you know who’s just saved us all from the WW III? These Russian & European medias do. Between 15 and 19 January WhatDoesItMean.com, AgoraVox.fr, SvetKolemNas.info, AC24.cz , PrvniZpravy.cz, RT (Russia Today) published information that the aim of the meeting between Deputy Secretary of State for the European and Eurasian affairs Victoria Nuland and Vladislav Surkov, Vladimir Putin’s advisor, was to prevent the third world war.

Victoria Nuland, Vladislav Surkov. Collage by Euromaidan Press

According to these sources, Nuland’s visit was “unexpected” and she came to warn Russia of a forthcoming NATO attack. The source of this information is Tunisian mathematician calling himself Hannibal Genseric writing on the French citizen journalism aggregator site AgoraVox.

Victoria Nuland’s visit was planned ahead and information about that has been known to the broader public.

The topics discussed were revealed both by US and Russian authorities and they did not deal with a “possible NATO attack and WW III.”

Fake #2: Azov battalion threatens the Netherlands with terror attack

A fake video where alleged Azov battalion fighters threaten the Dutch people with a terror attack if they vote against the EU-Ukraine deal in the upcoming referendum appeared on YouTube in the evening of 18 January.

Fake Azov battalion members burning the Dutch flag. Screenshot of a YouTube video

Firstly, the alleged Azov video was posted on a newly created account whilst Azov uses only its old social media acounts. Secondly, the weapons in the video were paintball weapons and the outfit also did not correspond to the Azov battalion outfit.

Thirdly, as several media pointed to language errors in the Ukrainian of the “actors.” According to a Ukrainian deputy Minister, the video is probably of Russian origin.

The real Azov posted their denial of the information on YouTube the same day which included explanations why the other video was a fake.

Fake #1: A Russian girl raped by migrants in Germany, pt.2

Further stories about a Russian girl allegedly raped in by migrants have been appearing in various outlets and in different languages (English, Czech, Slovak and Hungarian). New details about alleged rape as well as interviews with Lisa’s aunt and uncle got published despite the fact that the fact of rape had already been denied by the Berlin police.

Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov spoke in defense of “our little Lisa”, while the German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier countered the lies of his arrogant colleague.

Finally, the 13-year-old Russian-German girl has admitted making up a story about being kidnapped and raped by migrants, state prosecutors said. The police and her parents also dismissed that version and one local newspaper suggested Lisa was in love with a 19-year-old German of Turkish origin and had dreamed up the charges she made to hide her activities from her parents.

A 13-year-old girl has admitted making up a story that has trigerred international outrage and proved Russia was lying.

Euromaidan Press survey

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